#66. The Hash Browns of Pop's Cafe

Photo by the Elmo Monster, and the corned beef hash to the right is pretty tasty, too...

​Because ustedes gentle readers love lists, behold the latest entry in our Top 100 dishes list that
continues until Best Of--at which point, we'll give you MORE lists!
Now, on with the show...

Look at those hash browns to the left, above this sentence! It'll never be a dish unto its own--breakfast eaters in America, even the world, demand more than mere potatoes for their first meal--but what Pop's Cafe in SanTana does with hash browns approaches the soft, gooey beauty of the best mac-'n'-cheese.

I reviewed Pop's just last week, but have eaten here for years, and no matter the meal, I must get the hash browns. Look at the picture! The outside is as crispy as Edwin's photo suggests, nearly to the point of carbonizing; the insides, piping hot but slipping through your fork. I like to order two eggs over easy and country ham with the meal, split the yolk so it cooks inside the hash browns, chop up the ham, and have an impromptu scramble, but any way will do with the hash browns. Especially French toast--let the jam and the syrup flow, and expect the heartiest sweetness since a good 'cue.